By
Carlos Santoscoy
Published:
January 29, 2013

A Wyoming House committee on Monday
voted to advance a domestic partnerships bill after it killed a gay
marriage bill.

The 9-member Republican-controlled
House Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions Committee
voted 5-4 against Rep. Cathy Connolly's marriage bill. But later,
with a 7-2 vote, the committee approved a measure seeking to
recognize the relationships of gay and lesbian couples with domestic
partnerships, a bill also sponsored by Connolly, a Democrat from
Albany County. Connolly first introduced such a bill in 2007.

Jeran Artery, chair of Wyoming
Equality, the state's largest gay rights advocate, called the vote
“historic.”

“Today marks the first time a bill
has moved forward in the Wyoming legislature which would provide
essential protections for LGBT families,” he said in a statement.

In his testimony to the committee,
Artery explained that the laws would protect all families across the
state.

“We know that there are LGBT people
living in nearly every county across the state, and many of those
people are raising families,” he said. “All families deserve to
live safely and securely without fear that basic decisions about
their loved ones will not be honored. We know there is still a lot
of work to do, but we applaud the actions of this committee and are
committed to working with our lawmakers to ensure that legal
protections are extended to all families throughout Wyoming.”